Bomb's Away
by tigersforever
Summary: After telling everyone her wife cheated on her, Callie had to leave for her own good. Can she and Arizona find their way back together or are they done forever?
1. Chapter 1

"Apparently, I lost you."

Callie and Arizona stood face to face, neither making a move or saying a word. Finally, Callie had enough, picked up her coat and stormed out, letting the door slam behind her. Arizona could only look on helplessly, her head slightly downcast.

Callie had started back to the pit when her paged sounded, the room number foreign to her, but she walked in the opposite direction to it anyway. Back in the lounge Arizona had stood frozen until her pager had stirred her back into reality. She looked at the number and finally emerged from the room only to be confronted by Lauren Boswell.

"Arizona, can we talk?"

Arizona sighed. "What we did, what I did, was the biggest mistake of my life. There's nothing to talk about. I don't want you. Please, just leave and never come back."

Arizona walked away from the woman she cheated on her wife with and arrived at the room number on her pager to see the back of Callie entering the room. She stopped, took a breath and steadied herself before she walked in.

Arizona noticed Callie standing over by the windows not really looking at anyone as she turned to Owen to find out what was happening and to admire the latest addition to the hospital family. As she and Bailey fawned over the little one, Owen started telling them about the situation in the ER.

Arizona glanced in Callie's direction but she wouldn't meet her eye. Arizona tuned back into the conversation as Callie finally turned her attention back to the others instead of the lovely wall she'd been staring at.

"And the bad news?"

Owen continued on. "Everything else. The blood bank is flooded and the ER looks like it was ransacked."

Callie stood quietly, her arms folded as the rest of the board talked about shutting the ER before Avery entered the room and announced the airport was re-opened and he'd put Dr Boswell in a cab. Callie's eyes flashed with hatred at the mention of that woman's name. When Cristina innocently asked who she was, Callie couldn't help what escaped her mouth.

"She's the woman Arizona slept with last night."

The room was eerily silent, no one knowing what to say while Arizona's face gave away her guilt as well as the shock that her wife would announce her infidelity to the world.

Callie unfolded her arms and walked towards the door. "If you'll excuse me, I have patients."

Callie decided she needed to get out of the room and away from her wife before she said or did something else she'd regret. As Callie walked behind a shocked Cristina and towards the door Derek spoke up.

"Before you leave Cal, the board needs to make a decision."

Callie stood poised at the entrance of the room before she turned back. "Oh, actually you might but I don't. It was made abundantly clear to me last night I wasn't on that plane so I probably shouldn't have a say or be on the board either. So do what you want, I just don't care anymore. In fact, I resign from the board, effective immediately."

Callie turned on her heel and strode from the room and to the stairs, her hair and coat swinging in the breeze she created as she walked away. Callie decided she needed a moment to calm herself before she worked on a patient so she took her time getting back to the pit. Back in Meredith's room, everyone was staring at Arizona and only Cristina was bold enough and brash enough to say what everyone was thinking.

"You stupid bitch. How could you do that to Callie? Do you know what she went through with George and Izzie? Callie might not have been on the plane but she lost plenty too."

Owen tried to interrupt. "Cristina, I don't think this is any of our business."

Cristina turned and gave Owen a look before she continued. "You dumb...you know what? I can't even be in the same room as you." She turned back to Owen. "If we need to close the ER, I say do it. If you need me, I'll be making sure Callie's okay."

Cristina stormed away to find her friend as the rest of the board stared at Arizona before Meredith broke the silence.

"So, I'll call our suppliers and see if we can keep the ER running."

Owen nodded as the rest of the board made plans and suggestions while Arizona stayed as silent as Callie had been before she dropped the bomb on her. Owen and Avery left the room while Meredith started to make phone calls. Derek gently ushered a still quiet Arizona from the room and into an on call room.

"What happened Arizona?"

Arizona sat on a bed and sighed, her head in her hands. "The biggest mistake of my life is what. I cheated on my wife. I'm a cheater. Oh God, I've lost her forever."

Arizona's tears flooded down her face as Derek sat beside her and put his arm around her shoulders.

"I admit I didn't know you and Callie as well as I should have until recently but if there's one thing I've known about Callie for a long time is she has a big heart. She's hurt right now and obviously pissed off. Let her cool down and then sit down and talk. I'm not saying it'll be easy, but it's a start."

Arizona looked back up at Derek. "Cheating wasn't the only terrible thing I did last night. I yelled at her about not being on the plane and that I should get a saw and cut off her leg to even the score. And then I told Callie I trusted her more than anything and she let me down. That she didn't lose anything, I did. Then she said, 'Apparently I lost you.' What have I done?"

"Let her calm down and talk. You both need help and the only way that's gonna happen is if you talk."

Derek hugged a crying Arizona until she calmed down. "Come on, let's go and see if we can help in the pit. It'll keep your mind off things for a little while."

Arizona nodded and let herself be led out of the room. She stopped at a bathroom to wash her face and take a deep breath before she faced patients, other staff and especially her wife. Arizona arrived at the pit to be confronted by a scene of chaos. Owen hadn't been kidding. Arizona grabbed a chart and walked over to help the first patient she could.

Callie was in the store-room finding as many bandages as she could while Cristina hovered around her.

"Are you okay? Do you want to talk about it? Callie stop."

Cristina put her hand on Callie's arm to stop her movement. Callie sighed and leaned against a shelf, her head throbbing and her eyes sore from crying. She put her hand over the bridge of her nose and pinched.

"I don't want to talk about it." Callie pushed herself off the shelf and headed to the door. She turned back to Cristina. "Besides, there's nothing to talk about. Arizona and I...I'm pretty sure we're over."

Callie walked back into the pit, leaving behind a shocked Cristina and back to the patient she was dealing with when she noticed Arizona with Dr Murphy. They looked to her like they were trying to set a man's hips back in place. Callie handed the chart to the nurse with instructions to clean and bandage the wound and walked over to her wife and the intern, putting fresh gloves on.

"What's happening Murphy?"

Arizona looked at the helpless intern and back at her wife. "Looks like a double dislocation. Could you help me click them back in place?"

Callie sighed but moved Leah out of her way and took a hold of the sheeting they were using to reposition the hip bones.

"On my count. One, two, three."

A sickening sound came out of the patient as his hips realigned themselves back into their sockets. Callie tore off her gloves and turned back to Dr Murphy.

"Push two of morphine for the pain and let me know when you can get me in the OR and let me know if his status changes."

Callie scribbled a note in the patient's chart and started to walk away, Arizona following close behind.

"Callie, wait. Please. Talk to me."

Callie turned back and gave her wife a look that could melt steel. She pointed an accusing finger at her wife. "No, you don't get to do that. I can work with you to help a patient but you don't get to hold me hostage to plead your case. You said everything you needed to last night."

Callie walked away from Arizona for the third time in a day leaving her wife stunned and heartbroken in the ER. Arizona knew it was now or never. She followed Callie into the store-room and shut the door.

"No. We need to talk Callie. I know I hurt you and you're pissed right now, but we need to talk."

Callie stood, her arms folded over her chest again as she met her wife's eyes with her own. "I'll make this real simple for you Arizona. You fucked another woman in the place we work. You probably wouldn't have even told me if I hadn't caught you and then you unload everything on me. I'm to blame for everything that's wrong with you. Well congratulations, if you wanted to get me back, you succeeded. You win. I'm done."

Arizona's eyes pleaded with Callie's. "No, don't say that. We'll get help, I'll go to therapy. Don't say we're done."

Callie sighed and looked at the floor before she focused back on Arizona, making a decision. It might have been hasty, it might have been rushed, but it was all she could think to say in that moment.

"I want a divorce."


	2. Chapter 2

**Hello, I just want to make it clear this fiction will follow some of the actual show, but most of it will be my interpretation and how I'd like to see it go. Also, apologies for spelling Derek's name incorrectly in the first chapter, it has been corrected. Tigersforever.**

"I want a divorce."

Arizona reeled back from Callie's statement, the shock evident on her face.

"No, please don't say that. I know you're pissed and you have every right to be, but please, don't leave me. I'm begging you Callie, don't walk away from us. We can work things out. Just...talk to me. Yell at me. Call me whatever you want, but don't leave me. I love you."

Callie sighed and leaned against the wall, her hands folded across her chest in a gesture becoming all to familiar to her today.

"Arizona, I don't think you do love me anymore."

Arizona shook her head. "I do love you Callie. I made a mistake, the worst of my life, but we can work it out. Please, just give me a chance. I'll go to therapy, we can do couples therapy. We cannot be over."

"Arizona, you've put on an act for so long now, even you're believing it. You haven't been happy for a long time and you can't hate me and love me at the same time. I'm finally admitting it to myself and I know I've been selfish in wanting you to be better, but I have to face it. The woman I married - the beautiful, smart and faithful wife I said my vows to - died in that plane crash. She never made it off the mountain."

"No, I'm right here."

Callie sighed. "But you haven't been and you won't be until you get help. And you won't while I'm here for you to lean on or blame. I can't be your crutch anymore Arizona and we can't be together while you feel like you obviously do. Your little speech opened my eyes and now I know how you really feel, I can't be in a relationship with someone who feels like that towards me."

"I'll go to therapy, I'll get help. But I can't lose you." The tears flowed down Arizona's face like a waterfall.

"I need time and space and I can't be around you right now. You fucked another woman and now you're trying to make everything better like you have been for a long time, pretending everything is just fine. Covering up what's really wrong so you don't have to face it. Get help Arizona, face the fact that you screwed that whore while I was out in the wind and rain saving lives and our daughter was probably terrified and wanting her mommies. I mean, did you even once think about Sofia while you did what you did?"

Callie couldn't help her voice rising and her headache was becoming worst the longer she stood there and the look on Arizona's face answered her last question for her. "Yeah, I didn't think so. I have patients, I have to go."

Arizona moved to block Callie from leaving. "No, please don't walk out that door."

"Arizona, move. I can't be around you anymore."

Callie pushed past Arizona and flung the door open and back in the ER. Arizona turned and watched her wife leave, her tears still falling. She wiped at her eyes and followed Callie after a minute to find chaos, utter chaos. Bailey and Yang were working desperately to bring Richard back and Heather wasn't any better. Arizona looked at her wife, the pain clear on her face and she hung her head in despair. In the past she would've held her wife or at least stood next to her offering support, but now, all she could do was watch.

Arizona's attention was diverted from Richard and Heather when Leah approached Callie handing her the CT results from their hip dislocation patient.

"He has a liver lac and it's getting worse. I've booked the OR."

Callie examined the CT and turned back to her intern. "Good work. Go find me a general surgeon and meet me at the OR."

"Who do you want Dr Torres?"

"Anyone, just find me one."

Arizona saw an opportunity and approached her wife. "I can do it."

Callie ignored Arizona and headed to the elevators to the OR level. She'd said what she needed to Arizona in that store-room. She couldn't deal with any more right now. Callie arrived in the scrub room and started to move the soap over her hands when Leah arrived and started to scrub too.

"Please don't kill me Dr Torres. She was the only general surgeon I could get. Everyone else is busy with Richard or in the OR already."

"What are you talking about Mur..."

Callie knew what she was talking about when Arizona hesitantly walked through the door. Callie scoffed but continued to scrub, ignoring all attempts to communicate with the woman who'd ripped her heart out.

"Cal..."

Callie dried her hands on a towel and opened the door with her back, pure venom directed to her wife. The operation passed quickly, Arizona being the excellent surgeon that she was and Callie was able to repair the man's hip dislocation at the same time. Callie, Arizona and Leah stood scrubbing out together, the tension still clouding the air. Callie finished and walked away, her mind made up on what she was going to do now.

She needed time and space and she wasn't going to get it living in the same place as her cheating spouse. Callie signed and started the move. She put Sofia in front of the television and propped open the doors of apartments 501 and 502. She pulled her clothes from the closet still on their hangers and moved them into Mark's, pushing aside some of his clothing she'd never gotten around to doing anything about. She opened draws and took them in handfuls across the hall and dumped them on the bed until she could sort them. Callie did the same with Sofia's clothes and toys until she stopped and looked around at what she couldn't think of as her home anymore, making sure she didn't forget anything.

"Come on little miss, time for bed."

Callie hoisted her mini me onto her hip and walked across the hall for the last time that night but not before leaving her key on the table by the door. She closed the door to apartment 502 and opened 501, her new home for the time being.

Arizona returned to find the mess left behind by Callie's hasty exit. The wide open wardrobe and the draws haphazardly emptied. She couldn't fathom what was happening at first but then it all clicked into place when she saw Callie's key on the table. Not only was her wife asking for a divorce, she'd taken their daughter and left her. She really had lost it all. Arizona broke down and curled up in a little ball on the couch, her tears staining her cheeks.

She woke the next morning still on the couch, her eyes puffy and her clothes wrinkles. She picked up her phone and checked it for messages, found none and she got angry, real angry. Yeah she fucked up, bad, but Callie had no right to take her daughter from her. She dialed Callie's number and it went straight to voice mail. She waited for the message to end and the beep.

"Callie, where are you? I know you're mad but you had no right to take our daughter. Where is she? Don't do this."

Arizona hung up her phone and sighed. She took a quick shower to wash away the grime and headed to the hospital. Callie would show up there eventually or she could have her paged and she could find out where Sofia was. She ran around asking everyone she could find if they'd seen Callie and the answer was always no. She went to Meredith's room and finally found her wife. She was holding the baby and rocking him gently.

"Callie, where is Sofia? You had no right to..."

The baby started to stir as Callie spoke. "Be quiet Arizona, I just got him to sleep." Callie sighed. "Just go to the lounge down the hall and I'll be there in a minute."

Arizona waited impatiently in the lounge, trying desperately to calm down so she could talk to Callie like an adult. Callie finally entered the room and closed the door.

"Sofia is at the day care. I had her last night and I'll keep her tonight. You can have her for the next two days after that and we'll switch off until we can come to a permanent arrangement."

Arizona stood and put her hands in her pockets. "How long is this going to last?"

Callie shrugged. "I don't know."

Callie went to walk out when Arizona stopped her. "Please Callie, I'm begging you. Where are you staying? I need to know where my wife and child are or I'm gonna go crazy. I know I don't deserve it, but I need to know. I want to fix this, I want us to work. Will you please consider coming to couples therapy with me. We can work this out."

Callie sighed and leaned against the door frame. "I'm staying at Mark's. Just give me time Arizona. Give me space and I'll think about it."

Callie walked away leaving Arizona with only the smallest amount of hope, but hope none the less.


	3. Chapter 3

2 Days Later.

"She's had a sniffle so could you put the humidifier on and oh, here's Mr Bear. Good night baby girl."

Callie gave Sofia a kiss as she handed her daughter to her estranged wife. Arizona balanced Sofia on her hip and looked at her wife. Callie had dark circles under her eyes and looked like she hadn't slept properly for a day or two. Arizona could relate, she hadn't slept so well for the past couple of days either. Arizona took a chance as she put Sofia on the ground to run inside the apartment.

"Can we talk soon? Really have a conversation where we don't yell at each other. I need to know where I stand, where we stand."

Callie sighed and avoided making eye contact. "I need time Arizona. I'm still so angry with you. I don't want to say anything else I can't take back. Just leave it and give me space. I'll let you know when I've made a decision."

Arizona nodded and accepted Callie's terms. She knew she shouldn't push it but she couldn't live with the uncertainty for much longer.

"Okay. I'll let you know if Sofia gets any worse."

Callie nodded and briefly looked her wife in the eye before she turned and walked back into apartment 501 and shut the door. Arizona sighed and shut her door, hoping some one on one time with Sofia would cheer her up even the tiniest amount. Work was draining at the moment with one wing of the hospital nearly destroyed but she'd managed to roster herself off for tomorrow so she could spend the day with Sofia. It really is true, you don't know what you've got 'till it's gone and Arizona was learning that lesson the hard way.

Arizona picked Sofia up off the floor and gave her cheek a noisy kiss. "Come on baby, time for a bath."

Sofia squealed in delight and wiggled around in her arms, she loved bath time. A little while later a soaked Arizona carried a happy and now sleepy Sofia to her bedroom, slipped on a fresh diaper and laid her down in her cot dressed in her sleep clothes. She rubbed her little belly, Sofia's happy gurgles radiating in the room as she slowly fell asleep.

"Good night big girl. I know you don't understand what's happening but I promise you, I will do anything to make things right with me and mommy. I really hope one day we'll be a family again."

Sofia's soft snores made Arizona smile as she turned on the humidifier and the night-light and quietly shut the door. She sat on the couch with the baby monitor and turned on the television, took off her leg and promptly fell asleep clutching Callie's pillow like she had done for the last couple of days.

Across the hall, Callie had settled in front of the television as well, a bottle of wine already half gone since she'd dropped Sofia off with Arizona. A knock on the door pulled her back into reality. She reluctantly rose off the couch and looked through the peep-hole. A smiling Cristina was on the other side, a bottle of wine in her hands.

"Come on Callie, open the door."

Callie sighed but opened the door and let her former room-mate in, regretting her decision to tell anyone where she was. Cristina put the bottle down on the kitchen bench and looked around, noticing the already open wine bottle on the coffee table.

"Starting without me? Never mind, I'll catch up. Come on, sit down and talk to me."

Cristina brought a glass of wine into the living room and patted the couch beside her. Callie plonked herself down, picked up her wine glass and brought it to her lips, taking a large sip.

"Why are you here? I don't need your pity."

"I'm not here to give you pity. I'm here because I'm your friend and you need someone to talk to and you've been hiding from pretty much everyone for the past two days. So talk to me. Are you really serious about quitting the board?"

Callie leaned back on the couch and ran her finger around the rim of the glass. "I wasn't on the plane. I wasn't there to hear the screaming and feel the pain. Apparently I only wanted the street credibility and it wasn't my experience. I only have money from the settlement because I was in charge of Mark's estate on behalf of Sofia, so yeah, I probably shouldn't be on the board."

Cristina took a drink and leaned back. "But you were the driving force behind all of us buying the hospital. According to Owen they were gonna treat the place like scrap metal, selling the pieces to the highest bidder. You pushing us to buy the hospital saved a lot of people's jobs, not to mention patients. So no, you can't quit the board, we won't let you. As for Arizona, what are you going to do?"

Callie finished her glass and placed it back on the coffee table. "She cheated on me. She fucked someone else to get even, whether she realizes that or not. She's been pretending to be happy for a long time and it's time I faced it. I guess I'm just not meant to be with someone who doesn't cheat on me or leave me. I guess I'm not meant to be loved."

Callie stood and walked into the kitchen to open another bottle of wine. Cristina followed and took the bottle from Callie's hand and pulled her friend into a tight hug.

"What am I going to do?"

Cristina let Callie sob on her shoulder until she calmed down, led Callie gently back to the couch, sat beside her and put an arm around her friend's shoulder. "What do you want to do?"

"I don't know, I really don't. Arizona wants me to consider couples therapy but I'm so pissed at her I'm not sure what I should do. I even told her I wanted a divorce. What did you do when Owen cheated on you?"

"Threw a bowl of cereal in his face."

"You did what?"

"Yeah. I didn't talk to him for a week and then I was eating cereal for dinner and he sits down with a take out and something just snapped inside me. So I picked up my bowl and the next thing you know he's standing there covered in milk and cereal. Made me feel a little better."

Callie couldn't help herself, she laughed. She threw her head back and she laughed her ass off until a different kind of tear ran down her cheek. It felt good to laugh instead of cry or yell so she let herself enjoy the moment. Cristina joined her until they finally calmed down, wiped their tears and the little giggles slowly stopped.

"What did you do after that though?"

"I made him tell me the details. Why he did it."

"Yeah, not sure I want to hear what my slut of a wife did with that woman. I've already pictured it so many times, if I had the actual play-by-play, I'd probably jump off the roof."

"Right. So do you think couples therapy would help the two of you?"

"Well it didn't work for you and Owen, no offence."

"Uh, offence. Just because we didn't work out doesn't mean it won't work for you and Arizona. Owen and I, we want different things in life. Things we will never agree on, doesn't mean we don't love each other. I think you need to ask yourself if you want the same things Arizona does."

"I want her to get better, to be the woman I married, not this shell and a person who cheats. The Arizona I married would never sleep with someone else, wouldn't even consider it. I'm not ignorant, I know being in a major trauma like a plane crash and then losing a leg would change anyone. But this Arizona, this version, is not someone I could spend the rest of my life with. She needs help and I can't hold her hand and keep pretending everything is alright like she was doing for a long time. This is something Arizona needs to face on her own."

Cristina brought the glass to her lips and took a sip. "Sounds to me like you know what you want to do."

Callie nodded and sighed. "Yeah, I do."


	4. Chapter 4

Callie woke the next morning, her head feeling surprising good considering how much wine she'd consumed before kicking Cristina out last night, although she was eternally grateful to her friend for listening to her and helping Callie clarify what she knew in her heart she had to do. Callie stood under the water letting the steam of the shower surround her while the hot water cascaded down her body soothing her somewhat so she could face the day ahead.

Callie blow dried her hair and dressed in slacks and a blouse with her leather jacket before opening the door to find Arizona wheeling Sofia out the door in her stroller. Arizona looked at Callie with a cautious smile.

"Hey. We're just off to the park. Did you want to see Sofia before you started your shift?"

Callie adjusted her handbag on her shoulder and gave Arizona a thin-lipped smile in return.

"Yeah, thanks." Callie leaned down and kissed Sofia on the cheek and tickled her tummy, her happy laughter filling Callie with joy. "You have fun with your Mama at the park okay."

Sofia nodded yes as Callie stood after giving her daughter one more kiss. Callie ran her hand through her hair and turned back to her wife as the elevator arrived. They rode together in silence until they were nearly at the lobby level. Callie cleared her throat and decided to pull the band-aid off.

"So if you want to, when I finish my shift tonight and after Sofia's asleep we can talk."

Arizona nodded. "Yeah, I'd like that. We have a lot to talk about."

"Yeah, we do. So I'll speak to you tonight then."

"Tonight."

With a nod the two of them parted ways, Callie to what no doubt would be a long shift at the hospital, while Arizona walked to the park to enjoyed the day with her daughter. As Sofia played with a couple of kids in the sand pit Arizona ran her hands through her blonde tresses and made a decision. She walked over, picked Sofia up and walked back to the apartment to get her car. Arizona drove a short distance to her hairdresser, Sofia back in her stroller and having her afternoon nap while she entered the building.

"Hey Arizona. I didn't know we had you down for an appointment today."

"No it's okay, you didn't. I know it's late notice but is Angelo available? I just need a trim."

The young girl behind the counter quickly scanned the appointment book and looked back at a hopeful Arizona.

"You're in luck. I can get you in if you're willing to wait about a half hour."

"No, that's perfect. I'll go and get myself a coffee and come back."

"Great, see you then."

Arizona returned a short time later and sat in the chair, her favourite stylist standing behind her and Sofia still napping in the stroller beside her.

"So you just want a trim, yes?"

"Actually, I want to cut it off so it's sitting right on my shoulders, maybe just below so I can let my waves and curls come out."

Arizona pulled out her cell phone and showed Angelo a picture of her and Callie when they started dating, their matching smiles radiating from the picture.

"So it looks like this."

Angelo looked at the picture and smiled. "I can do that. She's a pretty lady is Miss Callie, you're very lucky Arizona."

Arizona sighed. "Yeah, she is." Arizona whispered to herself. "And I was."

Angelo cut Arizona's hair while she stared at her phone. So much promise was in that photo, she could feel the love in every pixel on the screen. When he was done, Arizona looked at herself and smiled. Time for a new beginning and hopefully she would get it right this time.

Arizona arrived home and gave Sofia a snack while she flicked through her closet to find the perfect dress for tonight. Even though they were just talking she wanted to look nice. Arizona finally settled on the red one Callie loved her in. She showered after feeding and bathing Sofia and putting her in bed for the night. Just as she finished a knock sounded on the door. Arizona took a deep breath and opened the door to let Callie in, still dressed in the clothes she'd gone to work in. She looked exhausted so Arizona offered her a much needed glass of wine as they sat on opposite sides of the couch. Callie took a sip before she spoke.

"I know you've asked me to come to couples therapy with you but I don't think it's a good idea."

"Callie, please. I made one mistake." Arizona's eyes glazed over with unshed tears as Callie continued.

"That's the thing Arizona, I don't think it was a mistake."

"No Callie, please, don't say that. We can work it out, we just need to talk, we need to sit down and get everything out in the open."

Callie took Arizona's hand as a tear rolled down her cheek. "I know that I was happy, just so freaking happy to have my wife back but I have no doubt that you haven't been since the crash. I ignored it for so long because I just wanted my wife back. I know anyone would change after a near death experience and losing a limb, I'm not ignorant of that fact."

Arizona went to interrupt when Callie put up her hands to stop her. "And I know I wasn't there, it wasn't my experience. I'm not trying to say I know what you went through out there but you have to face it Arizona, we both have to face reality. You've not been the same since you came back. I don't expect you to be, but the fact is I can't be with this version of you. I can't be with a cheater and a liar. I mean, if you didn't love me anymore you could've just told me and walked away. You didn't have to screw that woman. Sometimes I wish I hadn't caught you, that you hadn't told me."

"I know I hurt you, but I didn't plan it. I wasn't going out looking for someone to screw, to cheat on you, but I did and I can't chance that. But I want to spend the rest of my life making it up to you. I'm begging you, please, give me a chance to do that, to prove to you how much I love you, how much I need you in my life."

Callie took Arizona's hands again and looked her in the eye. "You shot me through the heart Arizona and you used that woman as the weapon do to it. I can't trust you and if I can't trust you I can't be with you. You need help Arizona, professional help. You need to decide what you want in life, who you want to be with, but you have to do it for you first. You can't do it for me, or for Sofia or for the sake of our marriage. You need to do this for you and only you."

"I want to and I will but I want to do it with you, together. I love you Callie, please don't doubt that. Please, come to therapy with me."

Callie stood and started to pace the room, desperate to keep her voice down and not wake Sofia. She had enough upheaval in her life, she didn't need to see or hear them fighting too. Callie took a deep breath and said what she came here to say.

"Arizona, there's no point in us going together until you figure out who you are now. Find yourself Arizona, find the real you inside and then we can decide if we still fit in each others lives anymore, if we can be together. Get the help you need and give me the time and space I need. I'm still so angry with you and I need to clear my head and I can't do that while I'm around you. I know this isn't what you want to hear but it's the best I can give you right now."

Arizona nodded and wiped the tear that rolled down her cheek. "I really have lost you, haven't I?" Arizona looked at Callie, her tears now flowing freely down her face.

"I can't answer that. I still love you Arizona, I can't just turn that off as much as I'd like to. I have to go. I'll pick up Sofia from day care after my shift tomorrow."

As Callie opened the door she turned back to her wife, Arizona sitting stunned on the couch, her shoulders slumped and the fight gone from her.

"By the way, I like your hair."

**Hello, So I've tweaked the story line slightly and gone out of order 'cause I really wanted to have a scene to do with Arizona cutting her hair. And I know Callie in the show is so much more pissed off than I'm writing her and isn't across the hall but I guess that's why it's called fanfiction, otherwise I'd just be repeating the show verbatim. Thank you to everyone reading, commenting and favouriting, it's most appreciated. Tigersforever.**


	5. Chapter 5

It had been a week since Callie had talked with Arizona and she had seen her exactly three times. Once when they'd been tricked into a board meeting in the nearly destroyed out-patient wing of the hospital and the second when she'd run into her in the day care. They'd managed to use the day care as a dropping off and picking up point and avoid seeing each other but on this one occasion she couldn't and she and Arizona were forced to exchange awkward pleasantries while waiting for Sofia to wake from her nap. Callie had even started using the peep-hole to make sure she didn't bump into Arizona leaving the apartment so she could avoid encounters like the one in the day care centre.

The third time was at the fundraiser. Callie had felt good about herself for the first time in a long time in an off shoulder black dress and her favourite heels. She had been cornered by her number one fan and couldn't help it when she caught sight of Arizona across the room. Callie couldn't stop the sharp intake of breath, the faster beating of her heart when their eyes locked.

Arizona was wearing a strapless black dress with swirls of colour throughout, her hair sitting on her shoulders, the subtle layers framing her face. Callie took a deep breath and tried to calm herself as Arizona's eyes zeroed in on hers. They stared for what seemed a lifetime before Callie finally broke away from their moment and turned her attention back to the gentleman in front of her. Arizona walked away heartbroken when Callie had turned away from her. Callie couldn't help it when the man asked if her wife was dead and when she noticed Arizona gone she stupidly went with the flow and said yes, she did indeed lose her wife. In her mind it was kind of the truth.

Arizona stood in the supply closet, the same one she'd tried to talk to Callie in the morning after she'd cheated on her wife and after Callie had announced it to their friends. Arizona was about to let the tears loose when April walked in. She quickly made an excuse about needing more I.V. Kits up in Peads and not being able to find them. When April took the cooling blankets and left Arizona let the tears flow. She collapsed onto the floor, the sobs racking her body until April returned with two bottles of champagne and a sympathetic ear. They sat in two commandeered chairs from the nurses station and set up a table with plastic cups from the water cooler.

Arizona sipped her drink as April sat across from her. "This is really very sweet of you but you don't have to sit here with me."

April sipped her own drink. "I don't mind."

Arizona sighed as she put down her cup. "I just, I can't stand the way she looks at me. The way that everyone looks at me."

April shook her head and looked back at Arizona. "I don't, no one's looking at you."

"Please. I grew up gay. I know what it feels like when people are staring." April chugged her wine while Arizona continued. "You're missing a leg and they stare. And everyone knows you're a cheater and they stare." Arizona's voice betrayed her emotion as she sighed and shook her head. "And they talk, and they judge and they stare."

Arizona took a drink and looked at April who was giving her the same look she'd seen from a lot of people since the plane crash and everything that followed - pity. Pity and judgement, like she was the worst person to walk the Earth.

"Like that."

April put down her cup. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to judge you."

"But you do, everyone does. I can see it in your face. I regret what I did to Callie and I always will for the rest of my life. You wanna know something though?"

April took another sip of her champagne. "What's that?"

"The way Callie looked at me, the way she stared at me, if felt really good. You know?"

April shook her head in empathy, thinking of her one regret and the looks they used to share. "Yeah, I do."

April poured another cup full of the pilfered champagne for each of them and toasted. "To regret."

Arizona tapped her cup to April's and took a sip. "To regret."

April swirled her finger around the rim of her cup. "So have you and Callie even talked yet?"

"A week ago. I asked her to consider couples therapy and she finally agreed to sit down and talk with me. Then she dropped a bomb on me. Told me she couldn't be with me the way I am. That I should get help for myself and work out who I am now, if we even fit in each other's lives anymore."

"Don't be mad when I say this, but maybe Callie's right." Arizona rolled her eyes as April continued. "You went through something, something none of us who weren't there could ever understand. You never seemed to me like the type of person to cheat, so something like this is completely out of character for you. Maybe Callie has a point about you needing someone to talk to. If anything, talking can only help."

Arizona took a large gulp of her champagne and sighed. "I know. My brother always used to tell me I was too damn stubborn for my own good. I just wish I had Callie by my side when I did it. Sometimes it's hard to even get through the day knowing she won't be there when I get home. Telling me about everything she did that day, standing beside each other in the kitchen while we cook diner. Giving Sofia her bath and reading her a bedtime story before she falls asleep. But mostly, mostly, I miss when we held each other in our bed. Not even sex, just holding each other. I miss being surrounded by her smell, the way her arms made me feel so safe and secure. She's right across the hall but it may as well be an ocean away."

April's mind wandered to when she shared some of those things with Jackson and couldn't help but hope she could have the same with Matthew. "I know what you mean. It's always the little things you miss when they're gone."

Arizona sculled half her drink, the champagne starting to go to her head. "Yep, the little things."

Arizona put down her cup and immediately refilled it. "You know what the stupidest part of the whole thing was?"

Arizona took another drink as April let Arizona answer her own question. "It wasn't even worth it, not even in the slightest. She has nothing on Callie in the bedroom, nothing at all. I mean, when I have good sex, mind-blowing sex, I want to lay there for ages and bask in the glow. With Boswell I was dressed and out the door two minutes after."

April sipped her champagne. "Are you sure it wasn't the guilt that made you leave the room so fast?"

Arizona pursed her lips and looked away from her new friend, not wanted to face that question and its answer. "Do you think she's ever gonna forgive me?"

April leaned on her palm, the champagne starting to take its toll on her too. "Probably not. She's telling everyone at the fundraiser you died in the plane crash."

Arizona felt the unshed tears burning behind her eyes. "Well, that kinda sucks. In that case, consider this my wake. We're gonna need more booze."

Arizona paged Murphy to get them another bottle of champagne and some snacks. The two of them proceeded to get so fall down drunk they had to be put in a cab but Arizona considered the night a success because after their somewhat heavy conversation she and April had actually had fun. Arizona fumbled in her purse to find her keys, her head spinning, so she sat down for a minute to let the room stop moving.

BACK AT THE HOSPITAL

Callie was scrubbing out after a successful surgery. She knew that performer was in for a whole world of pain and a lot a physical therapy to come but she'd done what she could. She collected a sleeping Sofia from the day care centre and brought her the five minute journey home. The elevator ride was quick and quiet, the ding the only sound in the silent building as it arrived on her floor. When the doors opened she was met with something she really didn't want to deal with. There was her estranged wife, passed out in front of the door to apartment 502, snoring and drooling more than Sofia. No matter how much her heart ached and how angry she was Callie knew she couldn't leave Arizona where she was.

Callie opened Mark's apartment and put her still sleeping daughter into her bed, turned on the baby monitor and walked back out to the hallway. She picked up Arizona's purse, rifled through until she found the keys and opened the door. Callie turned on the lights and went back out to Arizona and gently shook her awake.

"Arizona, wake up."

Arizona snorted and slowly came back into consciousness. She looked around and finally noticed Callie leaning over her. She wiped the drool from her mouth and sat up straighter.

"What...why am I out here?"

Callie didn't miss the slight slurring of her words and the subtle smell of alcohol lingering on Arizona. Callie pulled Arizona to her feet and guided her into the apartment.

"Come on, let's get you into bed before you pass out again."

Arizona leaned on Callie and let her wife guide her to the bathroom to use the toilet, wash her face and brush her teeth. She let Callie remove her dress and lay her on the bed. Callie unhitched her prosthetic and leaned it against her bedside table. Callie put a glass of water and a couple of Tylenol beside the bed and went to walk out the bedroom, having said very little to Arizona the entire time and abruptly stopping her every time she tried to start a conversation. Before she could leave Arizona called her name.

"Cal, thank you. I know you didn't have to help me, so thank you."

"I would help anyone passed out in front of their doorway. Do you think I want Sofia to walk out and find her Mama passed out? And I know we're in a secure building five floors up, but you never know who might stumble upon you. I did this because I have a conscious and I consider myself a good person."

"You are Callie, you are a good person."

"Then why did you do it? If I'm so good and you say you love me, why did you do it?"

Arizona felt the headache coming to fruition. "I don't know."

"Well if you don't know why you would cheat on me, how would I know if I could ever be with you again. Get help Arizona, sort yourself out. At least then something good could come out of this."

Callie turned on her heel and left before Arizona could respond. The dam burst and the tears flowed like a river until Arizona finally fell asleep. She woke the next morning, her eyes puffy and her head pounding. She opened Google and found what she was looking for. She swallowed the Tylenol and waited for the person to answer.

"Hi, yes, I'd like to make an appointment."

**Hello. As you can see in this chapter the first part comes straight from the show but this is where this fiction and the show must part ways. I don't like the story line of using Leah as a way of making Callie pissed off and making Arizona look like a serial cheater. I want to focus on the therapy and healing and Shonda needs to drag it out for the rest of the season to keep us all hanging around to see if they will make it or not. Don't get me wrong, I love the show and it's writing but I don't want to wait all year. Thank you for reading, Tigersforever. P.S. GO THE RED SOX!**


	6. Chapter 6

"Dr Robbins, we have a suspected Appy ten minutes out. Should I book you an OR?"

"Yes." Arizona glanced down at her watch. "No, crap, I can't. Could you please page Dr Karev and ask him to take care of it."

The nurse started to send the message. "Sure thing Dr Robbins."

"Thank you." Arizona finished signing the chart in her hands and after handing it to the nurse walked back to her office. She grabbed her handbag and walked over to the apartment to get her car. She drove for twenty minutes until she came across a plain-looking building, no sign whatsoever that this could be the place her salvation could be hiding.

Arizona shut the car door and adjusted her bag, took a deep calming breath and walked into the lobby. She found the name and floor she was looking for on the directory and took the elevator. She exited to find herself in a hallway, the writing on the door the only clue to her destination. She opened the door and was met with a sparsely decorated office, the only sign of life a secretary typing on her computer. Arizona cleared her throat and waited to be acknowledged.

"Good afternoon. You must be Dr Robbins." The young woman behind the desk gave her a friendly smile.

"Yes, that's me."

"If you'll have a seat I'll let the doctor know you're here."

Arizona nodded and took a seat, picked up a six month old magazine and skimmed through while the secretary pressed the intercom and announced her arrival. No more than five minutes later she was being ushered into the inner office, an inviting looking couch and a coffee table the only things separating her from the woman she hoped could help her. After she was seated and water had been offered, they got down to business.

"So Dr Robbins, first of all my name is Bond, Stacy Bond." Arizona let the smallest of smiles cross her face. Seeing this Stacy continued on hoping she'd made the first and most important connection with her patient - putting her at ease. "May I call you Arizona?"

Arizona played with the hem of her blouse and nodded. "Yes, that's fine."

Stacy nodded and relaxed back in her chair. "So Arizona, in this room I only have one rule. Thou shall always be honest. I'm not here to judge you or make you feel like crap. I'm simply here to listen and to help you work through the things in your life that you need or want help with."

Arizona nodded and relaxed back into the couch. "I can do that."

Stacy smiled and picked up her notepad and pen. "Great. So Arizona, what brings you to therapy?"

Arizona twiddled her fingers before she met Stacy's eyes. "I cheated on my wife."

"Why don't we start at the beginning. How did you meet you wife?"

Arizona started to give Stacy a rundown of her and Callie's life together, Stacy for the most part letting her talk with only a few queries along the way. Arizona talked about meeting her wife for the first time in the bar's bathroom, to their first date, the first time she met Carlos, all the way through to the car accident, Sofia's birth and their wedding. It wasn't until she got to the plane crash that her demeanour changed. Arizona sounded almost detached when she spoke of being in the woods for four days and then losing her leg. Almost like it wasn't her life she was talking about but a strangers she was relaying to a third-party. Stacy didn't miss the change in her voice and actions but didn't interrupt until Arizona finished speaking.

"Well, sounds like you and Callie have shared quite the adventure."

Arizona sighed tiredly. "Yeah, we sure have. And we would still be if I hadn't screwed it up."

"Arizona, you and Callie have been through so much in your life together. Most people would've given up a long time ago. The fact that the two of you made it this far says something about the love you share and the commitment you have towards each other."

"Until I turned into a slut and fucked it all up."

"Arizona, tell me, why do you think you cheated on your wife?"

Arizona shrugged and twisted her hands together. "I really don't know. I love Callie and Sofia with every inch of my heart and soul, but I really don't understand it myself. I slept with someone I knew for two days and messed up the best thing that ever happened to me. When I look at myself and what I did I feel disgusted."

"It's only natural to feel that way when we hurt the one's we love. Arizona, let's go back for a minute. Could you tell me more about the plane crash."

"Which part? The part where I sat there with my femur exposed for four days? Or how about sitting in my own waste the whole time? Or when I made it home alive and Callie cuts off my leg? Hmm. Which part interests you the most?" Arizona's voice raised higher and higher with every question she posed to the therapist.

Stacy put down her pen and took a sip of water to let Arizona calm down. "Arizona, when you spoke of your life with Callie and Sofia I could feel the happiness and sadness when you talked, the ups and downs. But when you told me about the plane crash and your amputation earlier you were void of emotion, almost like you don't want to talk about it. When I push you to open up about it you get angry. Did you do the same with Callie?"

"I admit I was angry at Callie for cutting off my leg but I moved on. I apologised for treating her like crap and we even had sex. It took me a while to get there and feel comfortable with my body again after losing my leg but we did reconnect physically."

"Yet you slept with someone you knew for only two days. Did you fall instantly in love with this woman?"

"No, God no. The sex wasn't even good."

"Then ask yourself this. If you really did move on why did you have sex with another person? Did you want to punish Callie for cutting off your leg?"

Arizona went to deny it but shut her mouth again before she spoke. Stacy was right, she did that to Callie. The only time she ever had any emotion for a long time after the crash was anger. She never once opened up to her wife about what she'd been through. The only time she thought about being in the accident was when she looked down at her leg, otherwise she ignored what had happened to her. It was no wonder Callie couldn't understand what happened to her in those four days, why she tried to include herself in something she wasn't a part of. It was like someone shined a light in a dark tunnel and she could see clearly for the first time since that plane fell out of the sky.

Arizona felt the tear trickle down her face and she quickly wiped it away. "I didn't know that's what I was doing. I swear I never wanted to hurt Callie or Sofia. I love them."

Stacy offered Arizona a tissue which she gratefully accepted. "When someone suffers a life altering event they have to face what they went through head on. If they shy away from it, if they ignore their emotions for the sake of others or downplay them it will get on top of them eventually. And that is what I believe happened to you. Arizona you do have PTSD. You've expressed anger towards Callie in the past but for the most part I think you internalized your real anger until it exploded and the way it exploded was you sleeping with this other woman. I don't think you had any intension of going out there and cheating on Callie but we need to get to the heart of your anger in order for you to move on, in order for you to become the person you can look in the mirror again and love."

Arizona finished wiping the tears and nodded in agreement. "I want that again, I do. Callie said the same thing to me, that I need to find myself again before we can even know if we fit in each other's lives." Arizona raised her head and looked at Stacy with hopeful eyes. "I need help. Will you help me?"

"Yes, I will Arizona. You've taken the first step and recognised you need help and that's what I'm here for." Stacy looked at her watch and put down her notepad and pen. "That's all for today, you've done very well. I want you to go home and hug your daughter 'cause I think you need it right now."

"Yeah, I really do. Thanks again."

Stacy stood and escorted Arizona to the door. "I'll see you next week."

Arizona turned and looked at her therapist. "Yes, you will."

Arizona said a goodbye to the secretary and took the elevator back to the lobby and climbed into her car. She took a moment to clear her head before she started the car. The clarity was giving her a headache but at least it was all out in the open. Saying you're sorry and having sex with her wife had solved nothing when deep down she was still angry at Callie for cutting off her leg. All she'd done was ignore her pain and let the anger and resentment build up until it exploded. Callie was 100% right. She needed to work through her issues and find herself first.

Arizona arrived back at the hospital and instead of going to the Peads floor went to the day care. She signed herself in and found Sofia playing with Zola. Arizona stood back and watched them play before Sofia finally noticed her Mama standing there. She put down her toy and ran over, practically leaping into Arizona's arms. Arizona collapsed back into a bean bag with her baby in her arms. Sofia started to babble away and Arizona just let her, softly stroking her daughter's hair, hair that reminded her so much of her wife's.

Neither of them knew Callie saw the whole thing, her heart filled with love at the scene in front of her, her anger towards Arizona the only thing holding her back from joining her family. Callie walked away before she was could get caught but not before Arizona saw her retreating form and felt the sadness roll over her in waves. A new determination came with it though, she would fix herself and she would prove to Callie that she could be trusted again. She could not and would not fail. She made the silent promise to herself, to Callie and to Sofia that she would get better for them all and they would be a family again if it took the rest of her life.

**Hello. Apologies for taking so long to update. Between stroller shopping with my sister, my best friends baby shower and work, it's been a looooong week. I will be ignoring the Halloween show and moving on to Carlos coming to town, that seems like a story line that fits my fiction much better. Thank you to those of you reading, any suggestions please let me know. Tigersforever. P.S. RED SOX! WORLD CHAMPIONS BABY, YEAH!**


	7. Chapter 7

Arizona dressed Sofia in her astronaut/princess costume and helped her into the car, driving the short distance to Alex's house. She greeted Derek, the other day care parents and the kids before settling in to watch the games begin. Sofia had her turn at pin the head on the skeleton, took a wild swing at the Pinata but finally found her groove at apple bobbing. Arizona held her hair back as she bobbed for apples, coming up with an apple between her teeth on her first try.

Callie stood slightly back from them and watched with pride as her mini me cheered with Arizona over her accomplishment. Sofia raised her hands in triumph before she finally noticed Callie had made it to the party. Sofia ran over to get a big hug and kisses from her Mommy.

"You see me Mommy?"

Callie balanced her daughter on her hip and kissed Sofia's cheek once again before putting her back on the ground. "I did baby girl. You rocked! I love your costume, it's very you." Callie leaned down and hugged Sofia again, taking the time to breathe her daughter in. "Hey, I think Zola wants you to go over and play with her."

Callie gestured over her daughter's shoulder. Sofia turned to look at her friend and said a quick bye to Callie before scurrying back to play with Zola and the other kids some more. Arizona tentatively made her way towards Callie who for once didn't look for a way out of the room and away from her.

"Hey."

Callie brought a drink to her lips before she replied. "Hi."

Arizona fidgeted, nervous she would set Callie off again like she did this morning over the Halloween costume. It was an argument that could have been avoided if they had only talked to each other, but as was the case lately that didn't happen. Arizona knew she was coming to terms with the realizations from her session and the ramifications it had on their marriage and their lives but didn't want to push things too far too soon until she really got herself on the right track. Callie had asked her for space and she would respect that.

"So, I'm sorry about this morning. It's just, Sofia asked me a week ago if she could be an astronaut and it slipped my mind to tell you. I really am sorry."

"No, it's okay, I get it. Kids change their minds all the time. Sof only told me two days ago she wanted to be a princess and I guess she forgot what she asked you. It's my fault too."

Arizona bit her lip before she continued on with the conversation. "So, did you see her wild swing at the Pinata?"

Callie laughed, the sound music to Arizona's ears. "Yeah. I thought she was gonna take Derek's head off. It was evil, but my first thought was, 'not the hair, for the love of God, watch the hair'."

Arizona hesitantly smiled and let out a small laugh. "That is kind of evil."

The two of them stood side by side silently and watched their only child play until Meredith interrupted and they were off to the streets of Seattle to trick or treat. Callie walked at the back of the pack with Meredith, little Bailey in her arms while Arizona held Sofia's hand as they knocked on doors.

"So, it looked like the two of you actually had a conversation without bloodshed."

"Yeah. But you know that's what two people who share a child do. You put aside your differences for the kids and you play nice. Don't read anymore into it than that."

Meredith balanced Bailey on her hip and held up her free hand in surrender. "Okay, just saying."

TWO DAYS LATER

Callie had finished her last surgery of the day and was completing the final chart when she heard her name being called.

"Calliope Torres?"

"Yes?" Callie turned and was met with a man in a suit, a very serious looking document in his hands.

"Consider yourself served."

Callie took the envelope and swallowed hard. The last time she saw something like this it was from a lawyer and it was her copy of her and George's divorce papers. She tentatively opened the document and pulled the papers out. She skimmed the top lines and breathed a sigh of relief. Arizona wasn't starting divorce proceedings against her, she was just getting sued. Wait, what? Who the hell was suing her for malpractice and why? She continued to read and realized who it was.

Callie walked to the nearest on call room and sat on the bed, curled up in a ball and cried. This was where she would normally call her wife to help and comfort her but that was not an option. She wiped her tears and scrolled through her phone, selected the number and pressed call. A few rings later a calming voice answered.

"Hello."

When she didn't answer straight away and he could only hear sniffling Carlos Torres did what he always did - he took control.

"What's wrong mija? Calliope answer me."

"Daddy...I'm in trouble."

"I'll be there tomorrow morning. Whatever this is Calliope we'll work it out, we always do."

Callie wiped at the never-ending tears. "Thank you Daddy."

Callie ended the call and laid back on the bed. Her life was such a mess. Her wife cheated on her, she felt so lonely and lost and now the cherry on top, she was getting sued. Callie stayed in the on call room for an eternity before she finally dragged herself out the door and made her way back to the apartment, for the first time in her life happy Arizona had Sofia tonight. She didn't think she could handle anyone around her right now, not even her beautiful daughter. Callie finally drifted into a fitful sleep sometime later, the nightmares taking over soon after.

The next morning Arizona had just finished feeding Sofia when a knock sounded on the door. She knew Callie was working this morning and she was taking Sofia to day care so she was a little curious to see who it was. She looked through the peep-hole and swallowed hard. Her father in law was an imposing figure even through a tiny hole in the door. Arizona opened the door and prepared to lie her ass off.

"Hello Arizona. And hello Miss Sofia."

"Grandpa!" Sofia reached out with her little hands for Carlos. Carlos kissed her cheek and gave her a tight hug before balancing his granddaughter on his hip. Arizona smiled at their interaction before she spoke.

"Hi Carlos. Um...Callie's not here. She's...um, at the hospital. Yeah, she got called in this morning."

Five minutes earlier and across the hall Callie stirred from her slumber and pulled herself out of the bed, standing on unsteady feet and making her way to the bathroom. She looked in the mirror but didn't recognise the stranger staring back at her. Her eyes were puffy and her make up smeared, her hair like a bird's nest. She turned on the faucet and ran the water, splashing a generous amount on her face to wake herself up. She looked in the mirror once more and walked slowly into the kitchen for a large cup of coffee.

Callie took one sip when she heard her father's voice through the closed door. She drank the rest of her coffee and paused at the door, took a calming breath and opened the door. Carlos, Arizona and Sofia all turned their attention to the sound. Sofia reached for her Mommy, while Arizona looked petrified. Carlos raised his eyebrow in a gesture Callie knew all too well, time to face the music.

"What's going on Calliope?"

Callie sighed and opened the door wider. "Come inside Dad and I'll explain."

Carlos handed Sofia back to Arizona with a kiss to the cheek and a promise to see her later. He walked through the door as Arizona balanced Sofia in her arms. Callie gave Sofia a quick kiss on the cheek too and turned to follow her father.

"Callie what is going on and why is your Dad here? Please, talk to me."

Callie sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "I, uh, need his advise on something. You don't need to worry about it okay. Just take Sofia to day care and go to work. I'll explain about us." Callie blew a kiss to Sofia. "Bye baby girl. Have fun at day care."

Sofia nodded and smiled at her Mommy. At the same time Arizona's head dropped. She walked away without saying a word but inside she was screaming. She wanted to take Callie in her arms and be the one to ease her pain, to be the one to comfort her when she needed it, but it seemed more and more like she never would again. Arizona turned to take one last look at Callie before she entered the elevator but she had already shut the door. Arizona felt the tears but she held them back, at least until she could be alone.

"Come on miss, time to play." Arizona kissed Sofia's cheek as they walked to the hospital.

Back at Mark's Callie poured another cup of coffee for herself and one for her father while Carlos sat on the couch and waited patiently for his distraught daughter to talk to him. Callie sat next to her father and took one sip of her coffee before the floodgates opened. Carlos slid his arm around her shoulder and pulled her into him, the sobs racking her body. Carlos let her calm down and wiped away her tears before he questioned her.

"What is happening Calliope? And why are you staying here instead of with your family?"

Callie ignored the second part of his questioning and pointed to the envelope on the coffee table. "I'm being sued for malpractice. This could ruin my career Daddy. What am I going to do?"

Carlos gestured to the envelope Callie had been given the day before and after getting silent permission from his daughter pulled the papers out to read. Carlos skimmed the suit and put it back down on the coffee table.

"I will get you the best lawyers out there mija, I will help you sort this out, you'll see. Trust me on this, I won't let anything happen to you."

Callie nodded and wiped at a stray tear. "Okay."

"Now, answer my other question. Why are you here instead of with your wife and daughter?"

"Short answer, she cheated on me. She slept with another woman. Remember that storm? I'm out there in the wind and rain saving lives and she's screwing some visiting doctor in an on call room. I left her Daddy."

"Why didn't you call me?"

Callie stood and started to pace the room, her hands gesturing wildly. "Because...because I didn't want to admit I failed again."

Carlos stood and halted Callie in her tracks. "You didn't fail Calliope. Come sit down."

After they sat Carlos put his arm around her again. "I never told you or Aria this but when you were younger your mother slept with another man."

Callie reeled away from her father. "WHAT!"

"Calliope, calm down and listen to me."

Callie leaned back on the couch, her arms folded across her chest. "Fine. Go ahead." She was having trouble believing that her mother, the same woman who couldn't, or more to the point, wouldn't accept her wife and child was a cheater. Oh the irony.

"Calliope, when you were four and Aria was about a year old I was working long hours. Your mother, she was lonely and she thought I was cheating on her with my secretary. I wasn't and of course I denied it but she got it into her head that I was. She slept with my best friend to get back at me."

"Do you mean Uncle Santiago?"

"Yes, the one and the same."

Callie tilted her head and looked at the ceiling. "Huh. Well I guess that explains why he suddenly disappeared from our lives."

"That's not the point Calliope. Your mother and I, we stopped talking. We still loved each other but we stopped listening to each other, stopped working on the two of us. I'm not excusing what she did, I never have, but I moved on from it and I forgave her."

"Well I'm not you, maybe I can't move on."

Callie stood, opened the cupboard and found her stash of wine. It was early, but fuck it, she needed a drink. Callie poured a generous amount into the wine glass and drank half in one go. Carlos sighed and took the glass from her hand.

"It took me a year Calliope, a year before I could be around your mother again and not want to walk out of the room every time I looked at her."

"How did you forgive her then?"

Carlos sat on a bar stool as Callie sat in the other at the breakfast bar. "I asked myself if I could live without her and the answer was I couldn't. I loved her enough to start again, to rebuild the trust between us. It took time and patience but we got there."

"You know patience was never my strong suit." Callie ran her hands through her hair and sighed. "I still love her Daddy, I can't help that, but she needs to get help for herself before we can even think of being together again. She treated me like shit for a year, blamed me for her losing her leg and then she cheats. I can't be with that person, that Arizona is not someone I want to be with. I mean, she doesn't even know about the baby for God's sake."

Carlos tilted his head in curiosity. "What baby mija? What are you talking about?"

"Shit." Callie picked up her glass and drank the rest of her wine. "I was pregnant when the plane crashed. I miscarried on the third night she was gone."

Carlos gently put his hand over his daughter's. "I'm so sorry mija. Tell me what happened Calliope, start from the beginning."

"Arizona and I decided to have another baby. We talked about it and thought we were in a good place so we went ahead with our plan. We kept it secret from everyone in case it didn't take. We went to a clinic an hour away so no one would know. I got tested to make sure I could still get pregnant after Sofia and when everything came back clear we picked a sperm donor and Arizona and I used the good old turkey baster to start trying. It took on the first try."

"What happened mija?"

Callie wiped yet another tear, this one for the child she would never know. "About a month after we first tried and before we could do the test her friend Nick came to the hospital with cancer. When we found out we couldn't do anything for him and he was going to die Arizona was inconsolable. He was her brother Tim's best friend and she didn't want to lose him too. I was so busy trying to be there for her it slipped my mind to test myself. The morning she left for Boise to do that operation on the twins I felt sick and threw up."

"So you took the test?"

"Yeah and there it was, two little lines saying congratulations you're gonna be a Mommy again. I was so elated I planed an evening for Arizona and me when she got back. I got a sitter for Sofia and I was going to tell her that night. When I woke the next morning she still wasn't back, but I wasn't worried yet. I thought she'd just been delayed or something. Then I got the call from Owen. I spent the first two days being told, 'Hey don't worry, we'll find them'. But as the third day rolled around I started to face the truth. I went from being a married woman with a best friend for a baby daddy to a single mother."

Callie swallowed hard at the memory. "I felt pain all through my stomach and then I started to bleed. At first I thought it was spotting like with Sofia but it wasn't. I lost that baby and she doesn't even know it worked. Only an OB at the hospital and two nurses know and they've never said anything. They found the plane and Arizona in those woods the next day."

"I'm so sorry. Why haven't you ever told her?"

Callie looked away before she refocused on her father. "When she came back she was so sick. Arizona was touch and go and then she makes me promise she won't lose her leg. I put all my energy into helping Arizona and I ignored my heartache to help my wife. She didn't need to know about the baby when she was barely hanging on."

"She deserved to know Calliope. It was her child too."

"I know Daddy, believe me I know. It's just after the crash and then losing her leg she became a different person. It took a long time but I thought we were finally in a good place and we could try again but I was fooling myself. I know Arizona has never faced what she went through and I was selfish in wanting my wife back. I should've pushed her to get help but I just wanted Arizona back. I know now she was only pretending to be happy for my sake and Sofia's and I hate myself for forcing her into that corner and not letting Arizona move at her own pace. I may not have cheated but I'm not innocent and blame free in all this. I understand why she did it even if she doesn't."

Carlos embraced his daughter and held on. "And that is how I was able to forgive your Mother. I may not have cheated either but I was to blame too." Carlos pulled back and pushed Callie's hair behind her ears. "I didn't listen when she needed me to and I ignored the pain she was in. I agree Arizona needs help to face her anger but I think you need to grieve for the child you lost and I think you should do it together."

"But what if we never work it out? What if we really are finished?"

Carlos wiped a tear from Callie's cheek. "Then you will at least know you tried. Only the two of you can decide what happens from now on but you have to talk to each other. Ask yourself what I did. Can you live the rest of your life without her or can you start over and learn to trust Arizona again. No matter what you do I'll support you mija, I'll be by your side."

Callie hugged her father with all her might. "I love you Daddy. Did I ever tell you I think you're the wisest man I ever met?"

Carlos chuckled as her held his daughter. "No, but it's nice to know." Carlos pulled back as Callie wiped at a fresh set of tears. "Tell me more about this lawsuit Calliope."

**Hello. So some of you may not agree with this storyline and that's fine but I needed to write it because even though Callie did everything she could for Arizona and took a lot of crap from her I do feel she was a little bit selfish in wanting Arizona to hurry up and get better. I am in no way excusing the cheating but I felt this would explain why Callie ****wanted Arizona to be her wife again so she could grieve for the child she lost. I have left the malpractice suit vague because I've been racking my brain trying to think of who would sue Callie and I can't think of anyone. I really REALLY hate the Leah storyline on Greys, it's like Callie's given up and Arizona's sleeping around to make herself feel something but she's still not getting help. I am however looking forward to Hector Elizondo returning, I love his work and he is my voice of reason in this story. Sorry for the long note, Tigersforever.**


	8. Chapter 8

Arizona signed a chart and handed it to the nurse when she felt a hand grip her shoulder. She jumped a foot in the air and turned around ready to run. When she saw it was only Alex she let go a big sigh of air and closed her eyes in relief.

"Dude, what is with you. You've been jumpy all morning. What did you do, mainline coffee or somethin'."

Arizona and Alex walked together down the corridor saying hi to patients as they went. "No. Callie's father is in Seattle and I'm waiting to be thrown against a wall or have to dodge a hit man or something."

Alex smirked then tried to hide it but Arizona saw anyway. "It's not funny Alex. He is going to kill me for cheating on his daughter and breaking her heart. You might as well plan the funeral."

"Dude, you're totally overreacting. Maybe he just wanted to visit Callie to make sure she's okay after the two of you split up."

"No, see that's the thing. He didn't know Callie and I are separated. She called him here to help her with something. I just hope it isn't divorce papers."

Alex put an arm around his mentors shoulder. "Arizona, don't jump to conclusions, I'm sure it'll be fine. Come on, I'll treat you to a brownie from the cafeteria. That always cheers you up."

Arizona let Alex lead the way but she was still stressed out and jumpy for the rest of her shift. She collected Sofia from day care and walked home, checking every corner before she turned it to make sure Carlos wasn't going to ambush her. It was silly and she knew she was being irrational, but she also knew how fiercely protective he was of Callie. Arizona finally made it to apartment 502 and was turning the key in the lock when a voice came from behind her right ear.

"Hello Arizona." She turned her head, her eyes wide and betraying her fear. "We need to talk."

"Carlos...hi, um..."

A sleepy Sofia stirred on Arizona's shoulder saving her for the moment. "Grandpa, you still here." Sofia reached out for her grandfather for the second time today.

"I am my little princess."

Arizona passed Sofia to Carlos who started to have a conversation with his beloved granddaughter. "You are the sweetest, yes you are. I love you so much. Mwah, mwah, mwah."

Carlos kissed all over Sofia's face, her giggles making Arizona have a smile on her face for the first time today that wasn't forced. Arizona opened the door and let Carlos enter with Sofia babbling away to him about day care and her recent fun with Zola and the other kids at the Halloween party.

"And I gotted the apple."

"You did? Well I hope your mommies took lots of pictures for me. I would love to see them."

Arizona put down her purse and keys, shutting the door after her father in law and daughter. She walked into the kitchen and started to make Sofia's dinner while the two of them chatted away on the couch. Carlos was a patient man, he could wait for the two of them to be alone. Besides, he could never get enough of being around Sofia, she kept him young. He sometimes thought if he didn't have a business to run in Miami and his wife wasn't such a stubborn person he would love to be around all three of his Seattle girls on a full-time basis.

"So Carlos, would you like to stay for dinner?"

Arizona started to chop some vegetables for herself as Carlos looked up from Sofia to answer her.

"Only if you don't mind. Calliope is catching up on some research and wanted to be alone. I really would like to stay so I can see my princess some more." Carlos tickled Sofia who laughed loudly at her grandpa.

"I'm sure Sofia loves that idea, don't you big girl." Sofia gave her Mama a big shake of the head and turned her attention back to her grandpa. "Is stir fry okay?"

"That sounds wonderful." Carlos blew a raspberry on Sofia's cheek and sent her into another round of giggles. He sent a quick text to Callie to let her know he was having dinner across the hall and settled back into the couch with Sofia in his arms.

Arizona took her time cooking them all dinner, conversation light as Sofia kept talking away to Carlos who was happy to let her as was Arizona. Every second Sofia could amuse and entertain her grandpa was a second she could put off their inevitable chat. Unfortunately all good things must come to an end. Sofia finished eating and after a quick bath, a story from her grandfather and endless good nights to Carlos with a promise that he would come see her again very soon, Arizona was finally able to get Sofia to go to sleep.

Arizona led Carlos back to the living room and headed straight for the wine. No way she was doing this completely sober. Arizona poured herself a generous amount and looked over at Carlos who had settled himself back on the couch.

"Would you like a glass Carlos?"

"No thank you Arizona. Come sit down, I won't bite." Carlos patted the couch beside him.

Arizona reluctantly sat down on the opposite side of the couch and took a drink of her wine before putting the glass on the coffee table. She leaned back into the cushions and fidgeted in her seat.

"So what did you want to talk to me about?" Arizona muttered under her breath. "As if I don't already know."

"I'm here in Seattle because Calliope needed my help with something and then to my surprise I find out what has happened between the two of you. I have to say, I'm very disappointed and upset with you Arizona."

Arizona's head dropped, flashbacks to when the Colonel said the same kind of thing to her or Tim as children when they let him down. For some reason those words chilled her more to the bone than any yelling or screaming could ever do. Arizona's shoulders slumped and a lone tear rolled down her face.

"I know, believe me I know. I wish I could go back in time and stop myself. I wish I had gotten help a long time ago and faced my demons. If I had I would've told Callie how I was really feeling instead of pretending to be happy. I let my anger build up and then I hurt her to get even." Arizona sighed. "I have to fix this and wishing to change the past won't help me."

Carlos put an arm around Arizona's shoulder and a kiss to her temple. "Have you seen anyone for help, like a therapist?"

"Yeah. I had my first session a few days ago. It was like she shined a light in a dark cave and I could see clearly what I was doing to Callie and to myself. I pushed myself to be okay for Callie and Sofia and all I did was make things worse. Are you here to help her divorce me? Please tell me you aren't."

Arizona looked at Carlos, her eyes shining with the unshed tears she was holding back. Carlos shook his head no and pulled her into a hug, the tears now streaming down her face as her body shuttered with her crying. Carlos sighed into her hair, sad all this was happening to his daughter's family. Arizona finally pulled away and wiped her face.

"Sorry."

"It's okay. Calliope...yes, she has some legal issues that she asked me to help with, but no, she's not divorcing you."

"Not yet anyway."

"Arizona, I can't tell you what's happening, you'll find out soon enough. But I need to give you some advice before I go."

Arizona nodded and wiped her eyes with a tissue. "Go on."

"Don't give up. Whether she'll admit it or not Calliope will need you and Sofia to be there for her. She has secrets, secrets that are tearing her apart and she will need her wife and child to support her. Talk to her and don't take no for an answer."

Arizona sighed and leaned back into the couch. "I've tried Carlos. I wanted to go to couples therapy but Callie's made it perfectly clear she doesn't even want to think about being with me again until I get help. I'm getting help not because Callie told me to but because I know I need it. I understand now why I did it and believe me when I say it won't ever happen again. I come home every night, I look at our picture and when I'm alone I cry. I hold it together when Sofia's around but the rest of the time I'm a mess. I will beg her for the rest of my life if Callie will give me just one chance to prove that I can be trusted again."

Carlos took Arizona's hand and squeezed. "It won't be easy and it will take time but don't give up on yourself or each other. Things are always darkest before the dawn but the remember the sun always rises for a new day."

Arizona nodded and gave Carlos a weak smile. "After my session I made a vow to myself, a promise. I want to and I will get better for them and for me. I won't give up Carlos, I love Callie too much to ever give up on us."

Carlos stood and hugged Arizona tightly. "Keep that promise to yourself no matter how hard it gets. My daughter can be the most stubborn person but I know she loves you and I know you love her. Give yourselves time and don't rush it, let it come naturally. Love always wins, you'll see. I'm a very wise man, I know these things."

Carlos pulled away and kissed Arizona's forehead. "I have to return to Miami but I'll be back in a couple of days. Look after her for me Arizona, even if she pushes you away, be there for her."

Arizona pulled her father in law for one more hug before he left. "I promise."

Carlos opened the door and walked the short distance to his daughter's temporary home. He entered and found Callie sitting on the couch, hanging up her cell phone and letting out a sigh. Carlos sat next Callie and put an arm around her shoulder.

"How did it go with Dr Hunt?"

"He says the hospital's lawyers got served with the same papers. It seems they're suing the hospital along with me. They're saying I should have known this could be a complication and that I'm to blame for him being in a wheelchair and taking away his future earnings. If I lose this I could be out of a job not to mention the hospital could go broke, again. Owen's convening the board tomorrow and we'll make a plan then. He says the hospital will use their lawyers to defend me but you know how that works Daddy. They have the best interests of the hospital at heart, not my career. I'm afraid they're gonna throw me to the wolves."

Carlos pulled his daughter close and kissed her temple like he had done to Arizona not twenty minutes ago.

"I promise you mija I will do everything I can. I have to go back to Miami first thing tomorrow but I'll be back in two days tops. It'll work out Calliope, everything will."

Callie sniffed but held her tears back, she'd cried enough. "I hope you're right. So, did you enjoy your dinner with Sofia?"

"Yes. She told me all about Halloween and her friends at day care. She's becoming quite the social butterfly."

"Yeah, she takes after Arizona like that. My girl is a friend magnet. God help us when she starts to notice boys."

Carlos grimaced, remember his own struggles with his daughters. "Hopefully that won't be for a while." Carlos cleared his throat and looked Callie dead in the eye. "She's getting help mija."

Callie moved away from her father and into the kitchen for a drink. She poured a generous amount and took a long satisfying sip.

"Well I guess that's good. I'm glad she's getting help."

Carlos moved from the couch and over to join Callie in the kitchen. "It is good mija because she's working through her issues and she's doing it so she can better for you, for Sofia and for herself. Arizona is trying hard to be someone you can trust again. At least try to meet her half way Calliope, if only to answer your own questions about whether you two can work it out."

Callie sighed and put down her glass. "It's not that easy Daddy."

"I know mija. Why don't you just try having a cup of coffee with Arizona. Sit down and have a ten minute conversation about the weather if you want but just talk."

"The only time we ever seem to talk is when it involves Sofia, but I'll think about it. I'm so tired Daddy, it's been a long day. I'll see you before you leave in the morning."

Carlos kissed Callie's cheek. "Good night mija. Remember what I said Calliope. Just talk."

Callie nodded and walked into the main bedroom while Carlos retired to the spare room. He laid on the bed and sent a silent prayer, one he hoped would be answered for all their sakes.

**Hello. I am officially over Greys at the moment, it's depressing the hell out of me. Making us all try to hate Cristina and breaking up her friendship with Meredith, Bailey getting sick and then to top it all off Arizona calls Callie her ex and takes off the necklace, well that was the last straw. The only saving grace is I want to write this story more now to get them at least talking and trying to work things out. Sorry for the rant but I am not a happy bunny Shonda! Till next time, Tigersforever.**


	9. Chapter 9

Callie woke early the next morning, a combination of wanting to see her father before he went to the airport and not being able to sleep for more than a few hours at a time without having a nightmare. Her mind was still going over every part of the surgery that paralysed the man suing her. Every suture, every movement of her scalpel was sending her mind on a hamster wheel, around and around she went with no end in sight. All it did was make her dizzy.

Callie pulled back the covers and sat on the edge of the bed, ran a lazy hand through her hair and took a deep breath in to centre herself. She had to face the board and the hospital's lawyers today and most likely give a deposition, one which could determine whether she still had a job at the end of the day.

She did make one decision that actually felt easy for her. She was going to tell Arizona about the upcoming case before she walked into the board room and faced question after question. If she faced a worse case scenario and lost her job or even worse still, lost her job and all her money in the resulting law suit, Arizona needed to know. This would affect Sofia and their family and as broken as it was she should know about it from her and not some lawyer or be surprised with it in front of the entire board.

Callie pulled herself to her feet and took a long hot shower, letting the water run down her body and relax her. She took her time dressing and entered the lounge area to find her father already awake, dressed and drinking a cup of coffee. He put down his phone and looked up to see Callie entering the kitchen.

"Good morning mija."

"Morning Daddy."

Callie kissed Carlos' cheek and poured herself a cup of coffee. She stood side by side with her father as he put an arm around her waist and squeezed.

"Stop thinking so hard Calliope. I can hear the gears grinding from here."

"Sorry. I'm just trying to make sure I have everything clear in my mind before I speak to the lawyers. I don't want to give them anything they can use to sacrifice me straight away."

Carlos put down his coffee cup and took Callie's face into his hands. "You are a great surgeon and I believe in you."

"Daddy, you have to say that."

"But it's true mija. I know how much you care about your patients and I know you would never intentionally hurt anyone. Have a little faith, it'll all work out." Carlos kissed her cheek as his cell phone dinged with a message. He checked it and looked back at Callie. "That was my car service, I have to go. Trust me Calliope, I won't let them hurt you."

Callie nodded and pulled her father into a tight hug. They stood connected for a minute before Carlos reluctantly pulled away and gathered his things. With one last kiss to her cheek he left for the airport and Callie to fend for herself. She gathered her notes on the case, her laptop, leather jacket and purse before she left the apartment. She checked the time and hoped she had enough before the board meeting to speak to Arizona.

Callie hustle over to the hospital and headed to the day care center. She needed a visit with Sofia to remind herself what she was fighting for before she told her estranged wife about the lawsuit. She exited the elevator and was about to walk through the door of the day care when she bumped into another person. She stumbled but righted herself and stood up straight.

"I'm sor...Arizona...hey. Good morning."

"Good morning. I'm sorry about running into you like that. My mind is elsewhere and I didn't see you."

Callie waved her away. "No harm, no foul. I'm built tough. So I guess you know by now we have a board meeting this morning." Arizona nodded and Callie continued. "I was hoping you had an opening in your schedule before the meeting. There's something I need to talk to you about."

Arizona smiled hesitantly and nodded. "Yeah. I have rounds and then I should have about a half hour before the meeting. Is that enough time?"

Callie adjusted the purse on her shoulder. "Yeah. I just want to spend some time with Sofia first and then I'll meet you in your office. If that's okay."

"Yeah, sounds good. Okay. So I will see you soon."

Callie nodded and watched Arizona walk away before turning and entering the day care to search for her mini me. She found Sofia where she always did, babbling away to Zola and her legion of friends. Callie crept up behind her daughter and initiated a tickle attack.

"I got you. You are now my prisoner. Surrender to Captain Callie. Arg."

Sofia laughed at her silly Mommy. "Stop Mommy. Tickles. Ha, ha ha!"

Callie stopped tickling Sofia and giggled, gave her an Eskimo kiss and plonking them down in the same bean bag chair she saw Arizona and Sofia in only a few days ago. She cuddled Sofia to her body and stroked her hair while Sofia started to tell Callie about Carlos' visit.

"And Grandpa readed me a story. It was awdsome."

Callie kissed Sofia's temple and couldn't help the smile plastered on her face at her daughter's mispronunciation of Arizona's favourite word. "Well I am very glad to hear that. Your Grandpa will be back in a couple of days and he can't wait to spend some more time with you. Would you like that?"

Sofia nodded vigorously. "Yep."

Callie kissed her cheek and smiled at her daughter. "I have to go talk to your Mama. You be a good girl okay and I'll see you tonight."

"'Kay." Sofia left to join Zola and some of the other kids while Callie exited the room with goodbyes to the staff and headed to Arizona's office. She knocked on the door and heard a 'come in'. She entered and found Arizona sitting behind her desk typing on her computer and looking distractingly beautiful. Callie shook her head to clear those thoughts and sat down in a chair in front of the desk.

"I'll just be one second." Arizona glanced at a fidgeting Callie and turned back to finish the e-mail she was working on. A moment later she turned her attention fully to her wife.

"So...what did you want to talk to me about? Is it something to do with the board meeting this morning?"

Callie took a breath and launched into a speech she'd been preparing since she woke up. "Yeah. As you probably know from my Dad I called him because I have some legal issues. The hospital, along with me personally, is being sued for malpractice. A patient of mind suffered a complication that was totally unexpected and now he's paralysed below the waist. He's suing me for negligence and loss of future earnings."

"Are you talking about that baseball player who stroked out while you were working on his knee?"

"Yeah, that's the one. I just thought you should hear it from me and not get a surprise in front of everyone else."

Arizona reached over the desk and placed her hand on top of Callie's and squeezed. "I know you didn't have to so I appreciate you telling me."

Callie looked at her wife with tear filled eyes. "Arizona...this could potentially cost me my career, my reputation and every cent I have to my name."

Arizona rounded the desk and wrapped Callie in a hug as the floodgates opened and tears flooded down her cheeks. Half of Callie wanted to push Arizona away but the other half was comforted by the familiar smell and touch of her wife.

"Hey, no way it's gonna come to that." Arizona pulled back and took Callie's face in her hands like her father did this morning and her words echoed his. "You are a great surgeon. In fact, one of the best I've ever seen."

Callie scoffed. "You have to say that because you're my wi..." Callie stopped herself from finishing that sentence and gently extracted herself from Arizona's hold. "I just wanted to tell you personally about the law suit. I should go and see the lawyers. I'll see you in there."

Callie turned and left the room while Arizona sat back down in her chair, a sigh leaving her body and her shoulders slumping. Callie wouldn't even let Arizona touch her, even just to comfort her, without pulling away. Arizona already knew she had a long road ahead of her but the longer the ride seemed to be taking, the further away the light looked. Instead of giving up it only gave Arizona even more determination that she would make herself whole again for the woman and the family that she loved with all her heart. She would show Callie she could be trusted again, that she could be the shoulder she could cry on and the heart that beat inside her chest beat for only her and her alone. Arizona shut down her computer and headed to the board room, ready to be there for Callie every step of the way.

**Hello. Just a little fluffy chapter to get Callie and Arizona talking. I needed it before the next episode. Thank you to everyone reading and commenting, it brightens my day, so thanks again. Tigersforever.**


	10. Chapter 10

Callie entered the conference room to find Owen waiting with Jackson and three people she didn't know who were quite obviously the lawyers. Owen stood and greeted her at the door.

"Dr Torres, these are the lawyers from the Harper Avery Foundation. They'll be representing you and the hospital."

Callie leaned in close to Owen's ear and whispered. "Owen, we all know they're here to make sure the hospital is safe, they don't give a shit about me."

"I'm on your side okay. I will do everything I can to help." Owen raised his voice to its normal level. "Have a seat while we wait for the other members of the board and we can begin."

Callie sat opposite the three lawyers, one a middle aged serious looking man, the second a slightly younger man ready to take notes and the third an Asian woman who looked a little friendlier but Callie wasn't going to let herself be lulled into any sense of false security. She poured herself a glass of water as Arizona walked in followed by Cristina, Derek and finally Meredith. Arizona sat next to Callie and gave her a tight lipped smile as the others settled around the table. When everyone was finally ready the senior lawyer began.

"So we are here to discuss the negligence claim made by one Travis Reed, a promising baseball player and patient of Dr Callie Torres who alleges her negligence caused him to become paralysed. He and his lawyers are alleging that the patient's history of Deep Vein Thrombosis was the cause of his stroke and that Dr Torres should have performed an articular cartilage repair instead of a full knee replacement. He is alleging the extra time required to perform the full knee replacement surgery caused a clot to form in his brain and that is what caused the stroke that paralysed him. He's suing for damages and lost future earnings."

Callie jumped in before he could say another word. "But if I didn't do the full replacement he would never have walked again let alone played. Once I opened him up it was obvious the Articular would be useless, he needed the full replacement. There was never any indication given to me that his DVT was an ongoing problem or even that it had happened more than the once he mentioned. He wanted to play and he told me to do whatever it took to make that happen."

The older lawyer who introduced himself as Greg interrupted Callie before she went into a meltdown. "I won't beat around the bush, I think we should settle now and settle quietly. There's no use in dragging Dr Torres' good name through the mud and this hospital's along with it."

Arizona spoke up, not liking where this was going. "And what if we don't settle?"

The lawyer gave her a look but answered her question. "Then this will go to trial and if we lose, well it won't be pretty. This hospital could go broke again. He had offers from half the teams in the league and they were big offers. We're talking A-Rod type contracts here. This could be a disaster for Dr Torres and Grey Sloan Memorial."

Murmurs sounded around the room but none came from Callie. She now sat quietly contemplating the rock and the hard place she was in between. They were all shocked when one voice raised itself above the others and gained everyone's attention.

"I say we go to court."

Greg looked at his paperwork and back at Arizona. "Dr Robbins isn't it? Aren't you married to Dr Torres? Don't you think that makes you a little bias on the subject?"

"Yes it is, yes I am and no it doesn't. I say we fight. I know Callie Torres as a person and as a surgeon and all of you know her too. She is the best orthopedic surgeon in this state and one of the best in the country. There is no way she could see this coming and I think we should trust that, trust her and fight this."

Cristina was the first to agree. "I do too. I say we fight."

Derek nodded and looked at the lawyers. "I agree. This is something none of us would've seen coming, especially if the patient didn't give the correct information. We should fight for Callie."

Owen, Jackson and Meredith all quickly agreed but had to head back to work while Callie had to give her deposition to the lawyers. Arizona stood to leave only to sit back down beside Callie.

"Arizona, I'll be fine. Go back to Peads and help the tiny humans."

"I think I'll stay, if that's okay." She turned in her chair and took one of Callie's hands. "Look, I know we're not together but I know you wouldn't have told me about this if you didn't want someone in your corner. I want to be here for you. Please, let me here for you."

Callie nodded and whispered a thank you. She didn't want to give Arizona false hope about them, but her father's words echoed in her head. She needed to know where they stood, even if it meant they were finished. An agonizing hour later Callie was finally able to leave the room, Arizona trailing after her. They stood side by side waiting at the elevator before Callie turned to Arizona having deciding tonight was the night she would know once and for all where they stood as a couple and a family.

"So...would you have dinner with me tonight?"

"What?"

"Well as a thank you for what you did in there and also because I think it's time we really talk. About us."

"Yeah, I'd like that."

Callie entered the elevator and pressed the button. "Okay. I'll see you at eight."

Arizona went about the rest of her day floating on a cloud. Could she really have a chance here, a chance to start again and get her family back? The day seemed to go slower and slower until she could finally go home. She showered and was going to doll herself up but decided against it. She pulled on jeans and a blouse, her make up light and her hair curled slightly as it sat on her shoulders. She knocked on the door of Mark's apartment and waited with baited breath for Callie. The door opened and Arizona's breath hitched, Callie looked so beautiful in a simple shirt and jeans.

"Hey, come in. Sofia's asleep and dinner will be one minute."

Arizona entered to find two plates on the table and Callie pouring her a glass of white wine as she started to serve her famous Chicken Piccata. The two of them sat in relative silence eating their food, only exchanging the occasional comment or remark about the rest of their days. When they finished Callie suggested they sit on the couch and talk. Arizona took a seat and sipped her wine as Callie began.

"So my Dad told me you're going to therapy, I'm happy for you. I'm glad you're getting the help you need."

"Well I've only had one session but I made a lot of progress and it made me see clearly for the first time since the crash." Arizona traced the rim of her glass with her finger before locking eyes with her wife. "Callie, I get it now. I wanted to hurt you because you hurt me when you broke your promise."

"That goddam promise." Callie pinched the bridge of her nose before looking back at Arizona. "You know what? I can't keep feeling guilty about it anymore Arizona. I made a decision to save your life, the right decision. You are a surgeon for God's sake, you knew the minute you looked at your leg and your scans that the chances of saving your leg were next to zero."

"Then why didn't you tell me that then? Why did you sit on the side of my bed and promise me you would save my leg?"

"Because I needed to hope too. Everything was so messed up. You, sitting in a bed clinging to life and me trying to recover."

"Recover from what Callie? Don't make this about yourself again. You were not out there, you didn't go through this."

"But I did Arizona. I sat with our daughter for four days wondering if you were ever coming back to me, the hope fading for every minute they didn't find you and then the baby... I promised to save your leg because I needed my wife back. I needed you to get better so I could get better. It's selfish I know and I didn't go through what you did but I needed you too."

"Wait, what baby? What are you talking about?"

Callie turned away, afraid to look Arizona in the eye. She's kept this inside for so long, she needed to let it out. Just like Arizona needed to let go of her anger about her leg and own her mistakes, Callie needed to get this secret out because the pain of keeping it to herself was tearing her apart.

"I had a miscarriage Arizona, on the third day you were in the woods. It worked Arizona, on the first try and then I lost our baby."

"What? Why didn't you tell me? How could you keep this from me? I had a right to know."

"Right, so when should I have told you? Hmm. When you laid in that hospital bed after the amputation and wouldn't even look at me? Or how about when you finally came home and laid in our bed for months and felt sorry for yourself. The night you cheated on me with that woman you told me I lost nothing. You did and only you. You've obviously felt that way for a long time so when was I supposed to tell you." Callie's voiced raised with every scenario.

Arizona's voice was almost a shout when she answered Callie. "You still should have told me about the baby."

Callie's own voice raised to match Arizona's. "I know alright, I fucking know. I was selfish Arizona, I admit it. I wanted to tell you every minute of every day about our child but I never got the chance. You needed me and I put my feelings aside to do that and I did it because I loved you, but at some point I needed you to be there for me. And I really thought we were getting to that point in our lives where we could maybe try again but then you went and you fucked that woman." Callie wiped at a tear as she finished speaking.

Arizona's face softened and she tried to touch her wife but Callie pulled away. "Callie...I don't know what to say. I'm...I'm sorry. Sorry that our baby is gone and for what I did to you and our family. I didn't know how angry I was about my leg until I did what I did. I never wanted to hurt you but something deep inside me did. She, Dr Boswell, didn't ask me for anything. She didn't push me like you did or ask me to hurry up and get better."

Callie scoffed. "I think we all know Boswell only wanted one thing and she got it when you gave it to her in that on call room. I needed to push you Arizona, for you, for Sofia and for me. You were floundering and you were lost. When I was in the car accident I pushed myself to get better for you and Sofia. I never gave up. You did. You ran when it got hard like you always do. You lied and you hid yourself behind a fake smile. I mean, did you even want to have sex with me? Or did you fake that too. 'Cause you certainly didn't seem to have a problem with that woman touching you."

"Callie, no. I love you and I love Sofia and I love our life. I never wanted to hurt you but it all got on top of me. The pressure to be who everyone wanted or expected me to be was too much and I exploded. I had sex with you because I needed to feel you and I needed you to feel me. I have NEVER faked sex with you."

"How can I believe you Arizona? How can I trust you ever again? How do I know you won't run again when it gets hard?"

Arizona wiped at her own stray tear. "I don't know. I can't change the past, what I did, but I'm going to therapy to get the help I need. It's going to take me time to be the person I should be and not the shell of a person that hurt you. But I'm begging you Callie, don't give up on me and don't give up on us."

Callie sighed as she slumped back into the cushions as Arizona took a chance and stoked Callie's cheek with her thumb as she held her face gently in her hand and made her look her in the eye.

"I made myself a promise after my first therapy session. I am going to earn your trust again Calliope, I am going to prove that I will never run again, that you can love me and that I won't hurt you for the rest of our lives. You have the biggest heart of any person I've ever met in my life. And I know that you've been hurt by far too many people in your life and what I did just added another name to the list but I just need one chance to show you that the woman you married in still in here."

Arizona took Callie's hand and placed it on her heart. "You feel that? This heart beats so fast when you walk in the room. When you kiss me it goes on a rollercoaster and when we make love it nearly bursts out of my chest. I never felt that way for anyone before I met you and I know I won't for anyone else ever again. I love you Callie Torres, I just hope somewhere in your heart there's a piece that still loves me too."

"I..." Callie was about to respond when a sleepy Sofia stumbled into the room, her teddy bear dragging behind her.

"Mama, bad dream."

"Come here big girl."

Sofia climbed onto Arizona's lap while Callie sat stunned. She had a court case to fight, a career in the balance and a person she knew she did still love begging to give her another chance. It was enough to do her head in but then her father's words came flooding back to her.

"Coffee."

Arizona looked up from comforting Sofia. "What?"

"How about we start with coffee."

**Hello. Wow, finally an episode where we all didn't want to throw something at the screen. Beautifully acted. As you can see I have slightly changed the court case (and I had a feeling it was Carlos who cheated but I wanted to make Lucia the bad guy 'cause I love the Carlos character too much) but my focus is more on the relationship. I know some of you don't want Callie to take her back but please remember I have not included Leah in any way in this story so Arizona is not sleeping around but trying to get better. And I am NOT doing the whole Cristina as a bad guy thing is this story, she is actually one of favourite characters and I hate seeing her being shit upon. Thank you for reading, till next time. Tigersforever.**


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